FAITH CAPSULE: Know that God is near at all times. 

Genesis 3

The creation of God is the word of God.
The word of God is God.
The word of God is not far, the evidence that God is near to all.
Psalm 75:1-2 declares, “We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.”
Calling God by His name is evidence that God is near.
Are you near to God?
Do you know if you are near to God or far from God?
The majority of reason to be far from God is rooted in not giving regard to God.
Knowing that God is near all times, the majority takes the position of distance from God the evidence of disobedience to the word of God.
Disobedience to God is evidence of sin before God.
One with sin consciously or unconsciously cannot hide from God to see but keeps a distance from God.
Living in sin will not accommodate the glory of God.
Romans 3:23 buttressed, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 
With sin, all will be short of the presence of God, not being in His presence that is always near.
Consciously or unconsciously, are you living in sin that keeps you far and not near to God?
One in disobedient will hid from the presence of God.
The sin of Adam and Eve made them far from the near of God. 
Genesis 3:6-10 documents Adam and Eve for the distance from God, “So, when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself.”
God creates all with His care to keep all near Him, but the sin rooted in not knowing God keeps all far from God.
Sin kept Adam and Eve far from God, not never far from them.
Are you living obediently or disobediently before God?
Obediently, give self to the word of God, walking in His presence and not far from Him. 
God is near, always. 
Get to know God, not to live a life far from God.

Prayer for today: Ask to live life for God, to gain and retain His presence.

FAITH CAPSULE: One thing God cannot do is: “God cannot fail.”

1Samuel 13:

In every issue of delay, there will be distraction.
Distraction is to disobey, to act against the word of God.
Distraction is not of God but the device of the devil.
Seven things that come with distraction are:
Distraction can terminate the calling of God in the life of one.
Distraction will not announce itself to derail one with a purposed agenda.
Distraction will derail or deny one with the loss of focus on God.
Distraction will assault to prevent one from arriving at the divine assignment of God.
Distraction can be a denial agent against one not to walk in the Lord to answer the calling of God.
Distraction can also be an indefinable force that will deny one from having faith to please God.
Distraction can build up discouragement.
King Saul was distracted to disobey the command of God to guide him and the Israelites against the enemy at war.
1 Samuel 13:5-6 records the war before the Israelites, “The Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude. And they came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east of Beth Aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in danger (for the people were distressed), then the people hid in caves, in thickets, in rocks, in holes, and in pits. 7 And some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.”
King Saul was to wait for seven days at the arrival of Samuel to engage the burnt offering and peace offerings.
King Saul disobeyed the command to engage the offering against the word of God.
As King Saul had finished presenting the burnt offering, Samuel arrived.
1 Samuel 13:11-12 records the response of Samuel to King Saul:
“And Samuel said, “What have you done?”
Saul said, “When I saw that the people were scattered from me and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash, 12 then I said, ‘The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord.’ Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.”
King Saul looked outside of God to the scattered world of his life.
King Saul became complicated to become terminated in the calling over his life.
A delay in expectation is not evidence of denial from God.
Failure to ignore delay will lead to distraction to become destroyed.
To experience a delay is not to substitute God, to seek outside of God.
Making a substitute for God is rooted in anxiousness.
Do not be anxious!
Philippians 4:6 encourages, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests made known to God.”

Prayer for today: Ask for deliverance from any distraction, not to become destroyed.

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 Faith Capsule: The word of God to have faith in God and become a believer.

Hebrews 4

The word of God profits, but when one fails to work the word of God, it becomes unprofitable.  
The book of 2 Timothy 3:16 declares, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 
For those who believe in God, the word will work to profit them. 
Do you believe in God? 
Are you working on the word? 
Titus 3:8 buttresses, “This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.” 
God is a jealous God that deserves the attention of all His creation. 
There is no better way of giving God due attention than pleasing Him.
How does He please?
Hebrews 11:6 records, “But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” 
Evidently, without faith, it is impossible to please God, while with it is to please God. 
Faith is not what anyone is born with, but is for all should seek and know that it will come. 
Romans 10:17, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” 
What the word is saying is about hearing and hearing continually. 
Hearing the word of God is not for a time or two, but it is of consistency and continuity.
When there is no failure in hearing, faith will pass one on to fearing God and having His fear go before such.
The word of God is to profit believers of His word by bringing believers into His rest. 
Hebrews 4:1-3 identifies why the word can be unprofitable to man, “For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said.” 
The word has to be mixed with faith to become profitable. 
How is it mixed with faith? 
Romans 10:17 makes all know that faith comes by hearing, and hearing the word of God. 
One who only hears the word but does not adapt to hearing and hearing ( the source of faith) does not mix the word to have faith. 
The word is not profitable if it is not missed with hearing and hearing by the word of God. 
Without giving oneself to hearing the word of God as a way of life, to have faith in God will not become possible.
Know the word to have faith in God!   

Prayer for today: Ask to be enabled to mix the word heard with faith.

FAITH CAPSULE: The clouding hindrance in Naaman denied his listening ability. 

2 Kings 5  

Leprosy takes a position of cloudiness over the testimony of Naaman, while pride represents the crowd as the agent of hindrance in his life. 
2 Kings 5:1 records, “Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor but a leper.”  
With all the honors over Naaman, there was a “but” that clouded his destiny.
The but which clouded Naaman reduced in all areas of the position. 
What is reducing you and not answering what God has called you to be? 
The hindrance that clouded Naaman is the same over the life of many today.
The hindrance in the life of Naamane was leprosy, the representative of pride over his life. 
When Naaman approached Elisha for his healing, the cloud in his life stood between him and the word of Elisha for healing.
2 Kings 5:10 records, “Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.”  
The healing word for Naaman to experience healing states, “wash and clean.”
The power to get healed was not in the Jordan but in the healing word for direction.
The clouding hindrance in Naaman denied his listening ability. 
The word of the prophet provoked the clouding agent in Naaman to manifest. 
2 Kings 5:11-12 states, “But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’ Are not the Abanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.”. 
Is pride a hidden identity that is clouding your destiny?
The pride in clouding Naaman manifested when: 
He became furious (extreme anger)     
He walked away from his ground of healing. 
The spirit of “I” set in. 
Rage caused him to act with fury.
Does any of the above sound like you? 
When pride in the life of Naaman subsided, obedience to the healing word with direction led him to become cleansed from leprosy. 
Can you see, when looked into the mirror, the word? 
When you look into the mirror, the word of God, do you see yourself, or do you only see others? 
Until you begin to see yourself in the mirror of the word of God, the word of God will not become your frame.

Prayer for today: Ask that you be enabled hearing to receive direction and the healing word of God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Status or title will not excuse one from experiencing cheers and jeers in the life of the journey. 

1 Samuel 18, 2 Samuel 16

The Life journey demands giving the best and letting God be the center of all.
In getting to the expected end, the cheers and jeers of life are on the way. 
Jeers and cheers shall come to be. 
However, maintaining focus on God in every engagement of life is a way to get a clear picture to navigate through without distraction or disruption. 
Regardless of status in life, experiencing cheers and jeers cannot be avoided.
David had a heart after God but could not avoid cheers and jeers from sounding in his direction.
Philistines and Goliath stood their ground in the war against the Israelites with a provoking statement, “Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” And the Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine; they were dismayed and greatly afraid.” (1 Samuel 17:8-10) 
It was the statement of Goliath that provoked David and made David respond: “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26)
David engaged and killed Goliath to gain victory for the Israelites. 
The victory brought so much cheer for David. 
The Bible records the cheers David received, “…when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women had come out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments. So the women sang as they danced, and said: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” (1 Samuel 18:6-7) 
The same David was cheered by the Israelites and jeered by the Israelites. 
While David was still King, the heart of the men of Israel went with Absalom, and David had no choice but to vacate the throne and run for his life. 
As David flees, curses and stones were jeers thrown at him. (2 Samuel 16:5-14) 
Imagine David, a man after the heart of God, experienced cheers and jeers but remained on track and did not get distracted. 
All should maintain focus on the life journey to arrive at their destination. 

Prayer for today: Ask for the direction of God with His peace order steps of life.